


Twin Magic: Haven

by LadySarella



Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Cullen and Hawke rivalry, Evelyn and Maxwell Trevelyan, Eventual Smut, F/M, Family Duty, Female Rogue, Fluff and Smut, Hopeless romantic Cullen is hopeless, Identity, Jealous Hawke, Leadership, Mage Hawke - Freeform, Male warrior, More tags to come later, Oral Sex, POV Female Character, POV Hawke, POV Male Character, Parent-Child Relationship, Protective Siblings, Romance, Sexual Content, Sexual Tension, Sibling Love, Twin Inquisitor's, Twin Trevelyan's both have the anchor mark, slow burn at first, some canon divergence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-05
Updated: 2016-06-23
Packaged: 2018-05-24 08:01:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 20,654
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6147043
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadySarella/pseuds/LadySarella
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>You'd think one Herald of Andraste is enough to set the world of Thedas upside down, but two? Evelyn and Maxwell Trevelyan were just ordinary twins trying to do their duty to their family by going to the Conclave like their father wanted, but they never suspected how things would change so much for them by taking a wrong turn.</p><p>Evelyn is the older twin, the free spirit living in her father's shadow, resisting being put in the role of one day becoming head of her house. All she wants to do is live her own life and not have to deal with the responsibility of leadership.</p><p>Maxwell wants everything Evelyn rejects. A failed Chantry initiate and a Templar that couldn't hack it, all he's ever wanted was to impress his father and live up to the Trevelyan name.</p><p>On top of all this, throw in a dashing apostate Garrett Hawke charming his way into Evelyn's heart, and a tough as nails Cassandra Pentaghast Maxwell's hopelessly in love with, maybe the siblings will manage to save the world while they're trying to navigate love and life's challenges!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Twins

**Author's Note:**

> This story was largely inspired by "Oneiric" by mahbecks! I don't plan on this being a super long fic, but I do know I like to write decent sized chapters, so it shouldn't be short either. Since there's so many stories out there that comb over the entire game, I'm probably going to be making time jumps through out, because I already have another DA fic that has turned out to be rather tedious to write. I want to have fun with this one, so I'm not making any promises, but I don't abandon stories either.

“Maxwell Trevelyan, did you eat the last apple? That was going to be my breakfast!” Evelyn Trevelyan threw a twig at her twin brother, who laid his head against a tree off from the beaten path they had been travelling.

Max smiled at her, knowing the older twin couldn’t begrudge him. “I was hungry!” He shrugged off her chiding look before standing up and stretching.

“You’re lucky we’re almost to this conclave. Father didn’t tell me it would be this cold down here, but I suppose that defeats the point of the name.” Evelyn rubbed her hands up and down her arms, wishing she had opted for the fur lining mother had insisted on.

Max ran a hand through his dark auburn hair before gathering his bearings for the day’s ride ahead. Evelyn had her own misgivings about going, but as next in line to take over her father’s place as head of the noble family, she was given little choice in the manner. And of course Maxwell had insisted on going too, so there was no sneaking out of it!

She shook her head at the thought. “You know, if you hadn’t tagged along, I could be halfway to Rivain by now, where the women don’t have to deal with overbearing fathers. Hmm and the tea too!” Evelyn could almost taste the cloves and ginger that was hard to come by in Ostwick.

“Oh, not that again! You know, I wish I had your position. You’re lucky.” Maxwell started cleaning up the camp while Evelyn readied the horses.

“Ha! I’d give it to you if Father would allow it. It’s not my fault I was born five minutes sooner than you.” Evelyn hated that fact, she never wanted to lead. But what father wanted for the Trevelyan family was usually set in stone, regardless of how much Evelyn had chafed at his attempts to push her into the role.

“I don’t know why he won’t let me lead, I want it!” Maxwell sighed, frustrated. “First I join as a Chantry initiate, but he’s not satisfied. Then I join the Templars, and that’s still not enough. The man’s as pious as they come, what do I have to do to impress him??” Evelyn never enjoyed this talk, it was always circular.

Before she could reply, the pair heard a rustling in the leaves across the path, immediately putting them on guard. “Who’s there?” Evelyn already had her bow aimed at the bushes before Max could draw his sword. The siblings had trained side by side for years and were equal in skill, but Evelyn always had him beat on speed, to his chagrin.

“Don’t shoot! Maker, I definitely don’t need this after the journey I’ve had…” A deep, male voice answered her, an exhausted man stumbled forward.

“I _asked_ , who are you?” While Max had already sheathed his blade, Evelyn was still on guard.

Who was this man? He didn’t look like any ordinary traveler or commoner, his appearance stood out. Evelyn kept her eyes trained on his muscled, armored form and noted an odd blood marking on his bicep and another across the bridge of his nose. And along his back lay a staff. An apostate! He looked somehow familiar, but she couldn’t place him.

“He’s hurt, Evelyn get my pack!” Maxwell was already rushing forward to meet the man, Evelyn sighed and set down her bow to retrieve her brother’s supplies.

“Gah, terribly sorry to disturb such a cute, _innocent_ couple. I was just trying to get to Haven, was ambushed by a group of bandits about an hour ago.” His sarcasm was already testing Evelyn’s patience, but she knew her brother was too altruistic for his own good so she’d never hear the end of it if she didn’t help.

Evelyn couldn’t help but roll her eyes at the mage. “Uck, he’s my brother. Here, Max.” She handed her brother the bag and proceeded to lean against the tree, not caring to help any further.

“You’ve got a nasty cut on your arm. Here, sit.” Maxwell gestured the man to sit on a nearby rock and took to rifling through the bag for bandages.

“Thank you.” The mage commented as Max went to work dabbing at the cut. “My name’s Garrett. You’re the first friendly people I’ve seen in days. Almost got lost in this forsaken mountain…” Garrett spoke eyeing Evelyn, making her feel uncomfortable for some reason.

She never met a mage before, and while she tried not to be too quick to judge, with rebel apostates running amok since the rebellion started, her trust didn’t come easy.

“Well, Garrett, I’m Maxwell Trevelyan, and this is my sister, Evelyn. It is nice to finally have some company. We’ve been following some older maps, trying to avoid main roads since we heard of the rebellion. Are you headed to the Conclave, like us?” Max looked up with trusting eyes, ignoring Evelyn’s disapproving look at giving away too much information.

“What a coincidence, me too! I’m trying to find my friend, Varric Tethras. The last letter I received said he would be there.”

“Would you like to join us?” Max’s eyes lit up with a youthful innocence that always seemed to drag trouble Evelyn’s way.

“I’m sure our friend here would rather travel alone, Max…” Evelyn hinted, but of course Max didn’t care. He was always the good samaritan, even at his sister’s expense, but she let it pass because it made him happy to help.

“Oh, it wouldn’t be a trouble at all to me. Unless it bothers your sister?” Garrett wagged a teasing eyebrow at the woman, followed by Max giving her the puppy eyes she always melted under.

Despite the pleading eyes, Evelyn still had to speak up. “Dear little brother, might I have a moment?” she practically dragged him by the collar over to her. “We don’t know this man, and as well meaning as his intentions may be, I don’t want to take chances on this trip.” She whispered even though they were out of earshot.

“Oh, come on, Lyn. We’ll be fine, and besides, I could use some company other than a nagging sister!” Max did have a point there. And maybe he wouldn’t talk her ear off so much if he had someone else there.

“Very well then!” Evelyn turned on her heel and announced to the apostate. “It’s no trouble at all, but we really must be going. We’re running late as it is! We don’t have an extra horse though.” Evelyn feigned regret, knowing Max didn’t have an excuse for that.

“Oh, well you can ride with me, Ev!” Max packed up his bag and went over to the horses.

“Lovely. But before we head out?” Evelyn turned to Garrett, “I see you’re an apostate. I don’t have any problems with apostates, so long as you don’t cause trouble for us, you’re fine. If you put my brother in a compromising situation, though…” She didn’t need to finish the sentence.

“My lady, you needn’t worry! I’ve had enough trouble in the last year to last me a lifetime so you’ll get none from me.” He held out his hand in a gesture of good faith and flashed a smile her way, making her blush.

Garrett was obviously a few years older than the twins, but had a youthful appearance about him. His shaggy brown hair clung to his head, the locks were cropped in a layered, jagged fashion that gave the impression he was a young adult, while his beard and mustache balanced it out by giving him a more mature look.

As the trio made their way back en route to Haven, Evelyn slowly began to drop her guard with the strange man after a time when she saw he wasn’t going to pull any tricks with them to her relief.

“So, who is this Varric Tethras you spoke of earlier?” Max chimed in, eager to fill the silence.

“Oh, you don’t know? Don’t worry, he’ll _tell_ you all right.” Garrett snorted, not realizing the twins had no idea what he was talking about.

“And what does he do? You make it sound like we should know who he is.” Evelyn found herself speaking up, interested enough in the conversation at least for the sake of boredom.

“Many things really, but you might know him by his books. _Hard in Hightown_ ring a bell?” Garrett shifted his staff on his back before shifting his attention over to Evelyn.

“We don’t read much, other than force fed Chantry rhetoric.” Evelyn never had much time for reading anyways, she was far too busy exploring her family’s land growing up.

“Ha! Speak for yourself, it wasn’t forced on me, sister.” Max, the ever faithful Andrastian would always defend his faith, even if it stood apart from his sister’s views. On most things he was steadfast with his sister, but religion was another matter.

It’s not that Evelyn didn’t believe, she just didn’t care for organized religion all that much. She always mentally wrinkled her nose to Max’s attempts to conform, to be the good little Chantry boy mother always wanted.

“It seems your sister isn’t a fan of the Chantry, but it’s okay. I’m not either.” Garrett sent a wink Evelyn’s way, once again making her blush and making her regret her body’s betrayal to someone she didn’t even know. “Apologies, it looks like my words have affected the lady!” The two men shared a teasing laugh, Max clearly enjoying the mage getting the best of her.

“Ha ha, very cute. You two, already cozying up!” Evelyn snapped off a twig from a passing tree and threw it at the mage, and soon the trio were cutting up, trading light barbs with each other. It took some time, but eventually they became more familiar with one another as they neared the village of Haven.

 

By the time they saw the village in the distance, Max was thoroughly exhausted. It was already well into afternoon, with the Conclave beginning early next morning, so Max relished the idea of getting the first bed he could find and have a proper nap.

They stopped the horses by the lake where the village path started, Max helping Evelyn down even though she detested it. He could be just as protective of her as she was to him, just in his own way.

“Maker, I hope there’s a free bed!” Max stretched his legs out as the other two unloaded their gear. “Oh, of course you want help. Sorry, sis.” Max rushed back over and took his fair share of their bags before they set out on the path.

Just outside the main gate, there were a few dozen soldiers practicing their drills, and Max was immediately envious of them. All he had ever done in his life was serve, but he always found himself serving a purpose that wasn’t really what he wanted in life. It was what he thought his father wanted.

It was when he and his sister took up sword and bow at age ten that he found his father looked at him differently. He wasn’t a natural at fighting like Lyn was, he had to practice a lot more to even get a glance of his father's approval. And that always bothered him. So, when improving his fighting skills wasn’t getting him as far with Bann Trevelyan, he thought joining something bigger than himself would do the trick.

And then as they walked, Maxwell in his distracted ruminations, bumped into a woman.

“Maker, what in the-” A tall woman with cropped raven hair exclaimed when she turned and met his eyes. Max would normally freeze from the embarrassment he would be suffering in front of Lyn, and especially Garrett, but this time Max’s reaction was different as he looked into the woman’s eyes and became transfixed.

“My lady…” For a moment he caught a soft expression from the woman. It was one of surprise and vulnerability that struck Max, he couldn’t tear his gaze from her. Her irises were a warm and calm walnut hazel shade, the shape of her eyes were feminine and yet practical. Not too wily but not too homely either.

He didn’t fail to recognize her other features. Maxwell’s focus quickly darted to how her angular jaw and heart shaped face perfectly juxtaposed her soft lips and eyes. Never mind the scars, they didn’t even register to him…

“Ahem.” Evelyn stifled a laugh at her brother. “You’ll have to excuse my brother, Seeker. He’s not around women very much!” Her teasing jest is what brought Max out of his trance and then he realized how ridiculous he must have looked slack jawed in front of this woman. And a Seeker! He was never going to live this down. Max wasn’t sure if the red in his cheeks would ever go away, he certainly felt it.

“It’s alright, maybe you should watch him. We wouldn’t want him stumbling into any more people.” The Seeker bowed her head, and before Max could finally speak up for himself, she was already on her way with her red-headed cloaked friend by her side.

“Well, I think I’ve had my fill of entertainment for the day.” Garrett smiled with his arms crossed across his torso, but was soon proved wrong as they entered through Haven’s main gate.

“Well, shit! Look who finally decided to show up!” A booming, distinct voice called out to the trio as they entered a local tavern. Max quickly found who the voice belonged to, a strawberry blonde dwarf enjoying a pint at the bar.

“Varric!” Garrett strode forward to greet his friend, picking him up in the most manly hug Max had ever seen exchanged between two men, and that wasn’t saying much because he never saw two men hug before. Max and Evelyn exchanged humorous looks with one another as the two caught up before Garrett forgot about his new friends in company. “Varric Tethras, I want you to meet my recently discovered travelling companions: Maxwell and Evelyn Trevelyan!” He held out an open hand in grandiose introduction.

“Well, if you two got this nughead here in one piece, this storyteller might just have to include you in Hawke’s sequel I’ve been writing! Due to popularity, it’s tentatively titled: _Tales of the Champion_.” Varric shook the twin’s hands despite their varied confused reactions at hearing the name Hawke.

“ _The_ Hawke?” The twin’s of course being on the same wavelength, a proud cliche of theirs. They exchanged confused and shocked expressions with one another after realizing they had been travelling with the Champion of Kirkwall and had no idea. Oh, and of course Max knew that name, given his involvement with the Chantry more recently!

“I suppose I should _really_ introduce myself.” Hawke ran an awkward hand through his hair. “I’m Garrett Hawke.” Max was not expecting this trip to be so much fun!


	2. Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Evelyn learns of the man the Trevelyan twins have been traveling with before attending the Conclave.

Evelyn had to clear her throat from the ball that had formed when she learned who their new friend really was. "Well, I feel like an idiot." 

"Don't, I try to keep it hidden to avoid attention." Garrett Hawke said, before looking back to Varric. "So, remind me again, why are you at the Conclave of all places? I thought you were staying in Kirkwall to clean up the mess." 

"I was blackmailed into it by this seeker, looking for you. Apparently she needs your help." Varric's voice had an inkling of guilt in it for having to lure his friend all the way into the Frostbacks, so whatever this seeker had on him must have been good.

"It's a good thing the Divine cleared me of any wrong doing in the Chantry explosion then, but being an apostate still puts a target on my back, so I hope this is worth it." Evelyn regarded Hawke, curious as to what really happened in Kirkwall. Evelyn had only heard rumors mostly, valiant tales of the Champion of Kirkwall defying Knight-Commander Meredith's insane plan to eradicate all mages in the city.

"You two look like you want an explanation. Here, let's sit down." Varric gestured the group to a table and they all sat.

"Since you're so well versed in telling my story, you might as well have at it, Varric." Hawke shrugged, knowing his best friend was all too eager to talk about his friends exploits.

"I am after all, your authorized biographer!" Varric held a hand to his chest in pride, completely serious.

"Yes, Varric, I said please write down my life so I can never get a day's rest without screaming fangirls clamoring after my roguish good looks." Garrett laughed but let him continue regardless. And as if on cue, two village girls could be seen whispering and giggling to each other with the name Hawke on their lips! Evelyn rolled her eyes.

"Any ways, everyone knew Meredith was a raving lunatic, but that didn't matter since she had all but seized control of Kirkwall. Hawke, having the reputation he had, was able to rally enough support, even within the templar ranks to stand against her. The Chantry knew of his popularity, and for once had enough sense about them to not blame Hawke for the events that followed, when they launched their investigation."

"Just like that? I have a hard time believing the Chantry didn't want to scapegoat you." Evelyn said cynically, knowing they would have wanted to keep their hands clean and avoid having to take responsibility themselves. Max looked like he didn't want to believe it, as naive as he could be when it came to the Chantry.

"They would have, if Meredith hadn't gone mad on red lyrium. That's their own fault, they are the ones controlling the leash that keeps templars tethered to the Chantry. Even they couldn't deny that." Hawke's tone turned serious, remembering how horrific events took place that forced him to leave Kirkwall and get away from it all.

"And now you're here, at the Divine's own meeting to end this conflict between mages and templars." Evelyn crossed her arms and looked at the mage. "That's rather ironic." She held back from wagging a teasing eyebrow at him, as he would have done the same to her.

"Ah, that is rather funny, how that works out. Maybe it was fate." His bright hazel eyes pierced hers for a long moment before Varric awkwardly coughed and broke it off. Evelyn shuddered, not entirely liking his gaze piercing her frame, like it was ready to devour her.

"Yes, it is. Well, now that we've got that out of the way, any one care for a drink?" Evelyn motioned the barmaid over and exhaled a tired sigh. "I'm parched."

"My lady, you read my mind!" And there was that flirtatious wink again Hawke gave Evelyn, this time she ignored it. She didn't have time for flirting, she wanted to get this whole thing over with so she could escort her brother back to Ostwick and finally take her vacation in Rivain. 

"Ev, since when do you drink?" Max never saw his sister drink other than the occasional wine.

"What? Mother and Father aren't around Maxie." The drinks arrived, the trio gratefully sipped at their ales, but Max's remained untouched.

"You three have fun with that, I'm going to the Chantry." Max rose and began to leave.

"Have it your way. More for me." Hawke slid the abandoned mug next to his, not one to waste good alcohol.

The next couple of hours went by fast as Evelyn exchanged stories with Varric and Hawke to pass time. It was true that Evelyn found Hawke to be very attractive, but she reminded herself she wasn't interested in looking for anything in the romance department. She had had enough of her mother trying to set her up with nobles from various city-states in the Free Marches. Varric passed out after the third hour of drinking; who knows how many drinks he had prior to the group arriving, leaving Evelyn and Hawke to talk one on one for once.

"So, have any plans after this whole shindig is over?" Hawke idly asked, showing interest in Evelyn when he could have been doing anything else. She scoffed to herself at the idea of the village girls taking up his free time.

"I'm going to Rivain. I want to see these village seers I've heard of, and I've been trying to get my hands on their tea, but I couldn't get a shipment out to Ostwick."

"Tea, sounds _very_ interesting." He smiled when she didn't catch on at first that he found that dreadfully boring.

"You jest now, but if I get my hands on the recipe and ingredients, you'll be in heaven when you taste it." Evelyn shifted in her seat and leaned her elbows on the table, not intentionally meaning to draw him in, but it did.

"Oh, is that correct? Maybe I would try some of your tea." Leaning forward, Hawke caught a stray lock of her brown hair and tucked it back behind her ear, but the moment was ruined by Varric's loud snoring. Evelyn pulled back and smiled.

"Maybe. Should I expect to see the great Champion at the talks tomorrow?"

"I haven't decided yet. For now, I'll be catching up with Varric and avoiding this seeker that wants to talk to me." Hawke rolled his eyes at the thought of getting mixed up in Chantry business again.

"I would feel the same if I was in your shoes. My brother sees the Chantry as this ideal on a shining pedestal, but people like us know better." 

"People like us? Are you hiding a staff I don't know about?" Hawke angled his eyebrow at her, "Yes, that's it! You're a mage in disguise!"

"Hey now, if it wasn't for normal people like me, mages would have no support at all." She sipped at her mug, ignorant to the fact that comment ruffled Hawke.

"Oh, I see. Well, on behalf of all _abnormal_ people, we're terribly sorry to bother you all with our inconvenient nature!" Hawke slammed his mug down, tired of always having to defend innocent mages to people who didn't understand it wasn't their fault they were born with magic.

"What I miss?" Varric rose his head up in a fog from his deep sleep after the mug startled him. Evelyn suddenly felt very guilty for her words, her cheeks grew rose red.

"Shit, sorry. I didn't realize-" She quickly spoke up before Hawke interrupted her with a laugh.

"I'm just pulling your leg! Maker, if I always got this easily offended by things people say about mages, this lovely head of hair would be gray by now." Evelyn whole face bordered looking like a tomato then, but rather than accept embarrassment, she threw a punch at Hawke's arm. But she couldn't keep her angry facade up, it broke into a smile towards Hawke's charm.

"Ouch!" He rubbed at his bicep like he was wounded. "Evelyn Trevelyan, you throw a mean punch."

"It can be harder next time if you like." She smiled sweetly at him.

"Hawke, I think Aveline would love her. Maybe we can get her to take a vacation from the guard and they can let off some steam on you, ha!" Varric hiccuped and passed back out on the table.

"Don't get any ideas from him. Keeping Aveline at bay from pommeling this face was hard enough, but two strong women? The Maker only gave me so much luck in this world."

"You think rather highly of yourself." Evelyn regarded him and shyly looked away when those hazel eyes stared intently back. Why did he have to directly look at her so much?

"I'm just a confident man. Is something wrong with that? You seem confident in yourself." Hawke looked at his passed out friend. "Here, let's get him into a bed. Join me?"

"I can't argue with that. Sure." They rose from the table, Evelyn could feel the alcohol's effects coursing through her veins, she resisted it.

"Huh? Where we going?" Varric slurred as Hawke hauled him over his shoulder.

"Preferably away from any hard surfaces." Hawke grunted under the weight of the dwarf, making sure he didn't hit his head exiting through the door.

When they settled Varric in at the local inn, Evelyn and Hawke noticed the sun was setting.

"Well then...I should go find my brother and get a place to lay my head for the night." Evelyn rubbed her hands over her arms as the cold temperature started to set in.

"Right, well I'll probably see you around tomorrow. Good night, Evelyn." Her name rolled off his lips, and as she watched his lips form the words, a chill crept down Evelyn's arms that made her wonder if it wasn't just the low temperature that caused it.

"Good night, Garrett." They nodded to each other and went their separate ways. As Evelyn walked towards the Chantry, thoughts of Hawke played out. Who was this man, really? And why was he more interested in talking, much less flirting with her when he could be doing that with any one? And why did she even care? Evelyn pondered these things as she ate dinner with her brother that night, before settling into a cot and wondering what tomorrow would bring.


	3. Intention

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hawke thinks of Evelyn after talking with her, Evelyn embarrasses Maxwell in front of Cullen and Cassandra, and the twins lives change forever in the Temple of Sacred Ashes.

If Garrett Hawke had known speaking to Cassandra Pentaghast was going to be such a headache, he would have traveled back in time to tell himself to get out of Haven as soon as Varric had told him why he was summoned there. Oh, who was he kidding. He would have stuck around regardless, because no matter how much he wanted to live his own life, the Champion of Kirkwall was more than just simple Garrett. But one could dream for normalcy.

At least he had met decent people along the way. Evelyn wasn’t hard on the eyes either. Hawke had enjoyed talking with her, it was definitely a welcome distraction from Varric’s passed out form. He usually didn’t go out of his way to _actually_ get to know many women; judging from Evelyn’s exterior she was just as guarded as he was. But something about her intrigued him, and that was rare.

Most women he came across were little more than momentary distractions to fill the void he had in his life. With his family gone (he hadn’t heard from his famous second cousin in a long time), and Isabella too busy for him, he could be lonely at times. To fill that emptiness one could usually find Garrett Hawke bedding a tavern maiden behind an inn on his travels. He wasn’t exactly proud of his feminine exploits, but a man had needs on the road!

So when Hawke found himself unable to tear his focus away from Evelyn at The Singing Maiden, (he could have just as easily spent his time eyeing the girls in the corner) he kept thinking about her throughout the rest of the night. She wasn’t going to be another sexual conquest for him, but she was a challenge. And Garrett Hawke loved challenges.

He settled in that night thinking of how he could get to know her better, falling asleep to how easy he was going to make his life from here on out. Simplifying it, starting with Evelyn Trevelyan.

Until the next day, when everything in their lives would change forever.

 

  
Max woke the next day when the sun’s rays crept in through the cracks of the window shutters, earning a groan from him. Evelyn was still sound asleep on the cot across from him, and knowing better than to wake her or lest risk his sister’s wrath, he quietly rose and got ready.

“Good morning!” He beamed at the townspeople making his way through the village. He stopped by the local blacksmith first to work on his sword for a bit before going to the tavern to find food. Evelyn would kill him if he didn’t bring back something for her, he painstakingly learned that lesson, several times in his life.

But he didn’t mind, he loved his sister a lot. Family was very important to him, and Evelyn was the only person that ever truly accepted him for him without any strings attached, so the loyalty was strong there.

When he got back to the cabin, he expected to find Evelyn still sleeping, but she was just finishing up getting dressed. “Good morning, sister.”

“And good morning to you, brother. Oooo you brought me biscuits!” She practically jumped in glee for the warm food that they had sorely been missing out on since leaving Ostwick.

Once they finished eating, they wandered back out into the village and observed the soldiers in training. A blonde man with a fur pauldron covering his shoulders was instructing them.

“That’s Cullen Rutherford! He became Knight-Commander of Kirkwall after Meredith.” Max said in awe when he recognized him.

“Is that your new crush?” Evelyn elbowed her brother. “Or is it the Seeker Cassandra?”

“I wouldn’t talk if I were you, miss. I saw the looks you gave Hawke!” He raised an eyebrow.

“What?” Evelyn scoffed at the idea. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“A twin knows these things.” Max commented as they continued to watch from a distance the training drills.

“A twin knows jack shit.” Evelyn gave him a pointed look, but he knew better. They were usually pretty open with one another, but love interests were always a private subject for her for some reason. Maxwell would probably never wrap his head around it, he didn’t understand women very well.

“Oh, well. Come on, help me train! My sword arm is getting rusty!” He handed her two spare swords from the rack and they walked closer to the training group. When training, it was always two swords for Evelyn, and a sword and shield for Maxwell.

“If I didn’t love archery so much, I might be better at swordplay than you, little brother.” She rolled her shoulders in preparation before holding the sword out, ready to start.

“You wish!” He struck forward suddenly, not caring how it caught her off guard because she would block it.

They traded strikes for the next few minutes, and every time Max would get close to submitting Evelyn, she would always find some way to slide out of it. Whether that be using gymnastics, or some other tactic to maneuver out of it, she always stayed ahead of him.

“Are you getting tired of chasing me?” She asked with her hands on her hips, a smug look of satisfaction on her face.

“Are you tired of running away? Come, let’s fight!” He motioned her forward, wanting to win badly. Especially when their sparring had caught the attention of Cullen!

“Looks like we have an audience. Let’s give them a show?” Evelyn looked over her shoulder, acknowledging that both Cullen and now Hawke were watching. The mage leaned against the village wall casually watching with interest.

“Upping the stakes, I like that. Now Trevelyan pride is on the line.” He rushed forward with his sword, throwing his shield to the side to focus on bringing her to heel.

Evelyn didn’t jump away this time, with as much might as she could muster, she parried with her swords, holding Maxwell’s sword at bay just inches from her face. He took just a moment to see Cullen’s reaction, now a cluster of soldiers watching their fight.

And that was all Evelyn needed to get the jump on him. She shoved her knee hard into his side, sending him reeling over and gasping for breath. She quickly jumped up and held her sword to his chin. “Do you yield, Ser Trevelyan?” The look in her eye was wicked, she could barely contain herself.

“Ugh, yes.” Maxwell sighed, knowing it was his fault.

In the distance, Hawke was clapping his hands for Evelyn as she took a bow. And next to him was Cassandra Pentaghast. So maybe this wasn’t the best start to the day!

  


Evelyn knew they were hopelessly lost in this temple. As stubborn as she was, she wouldn’t listen to Max when he had tried pointing them one way, and now they were stuck in the lower levels of the temple. Most likely nowhere near where the peace talks were being held.

“Okay, I got us lost. I admit that!” She conceded, earning a satisfied look from her brother that he wasn’t the only fallible one of the pair.

The doors to the upper levels were found locked to their chagrin, making Evelyn wish they hadn’t sneaked in the back way. But then Max came through for them, by happening on a secret door when he leaned on a bookshelf.

“Oh, a secret passageway in a creepy dungeon. How original.” Evelyn didn’t try to hide her sarcasm, she hated dungeons. Considering they had reached a dead end, the twins were intent on fulfilling their purpose there, so they proceeded through the passageway.

It didn’t take long for panic to set in, but when it did, Evelyn had no idea what was in store for her and her sibling. The last thing either of them could remember happening was a cry for help, then nothingness.


	4. Save

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hawke rushes to the Temple of Sacred Ashes with Varric and Cullen in tow to try to save the Trevelyan's.

The tavern where Hawke and Varric drank that night was filled to capacity; Hawke was surprised not a soul was up dancing to the loud and lively music playing. Part of him regretted not going to the peace conference with the twins, but he was just so tired. So tired of the political machinations that ruled Thedas, so tired of always being at the forefront. It wasn’t that he didn’t like helping people, he just wanted a vacation. And he hadn’t seen Varric in about four years, they deserved this, right?

“Ah, just like old times. Play a couple hands of Wicked Grace, have some ale, and let the world’s problems stop at the door.” Hawke finished off his tankard, enjoying the much better quality than what they were used to from The Hanged Man.

“And the barmaid is pretty, and a lot friendlier than Norah!” Varric might make it look like the place was better than their spot, but Hawke knew where Varric’s heart truly lie.

“Well, I’m beat. Ready to get out of here?” Garrett sighed, even though the night was still young, he wasn’t too keen on all the stares he had been getting since they arrived.

“Fine, fine.” They rose, Varric dropped the coin on the table. “I’ll take my leave.”

“See you tomorrow, hun. And maybe you as well?” The passing waitress winked at the mage before continuing her rounds.

“Maybe.” Hawke curtly replied, although her look was fair he wasn’t all that interested. On the verge of his mid-thirties; the urge to settle down and have some normalcy in his life had begun to creep up on Garrett.

The pair had almost made their way to the exit when they heard that very same waitress land a hard smack across an unexpectant face. Hawke didn’t need to turn around to see what was going on; it was just like at The Hanged Man with Norah. And of course Varric’s reaction was just the same.

“Get em, tiger.” Hawke said under his breath, knowing to stay out of this fight.

“She’s not interested.” Varric swiftly pinned the man to the wall with two precisely aimed shots. “But Bianca here, is a sucker for drunk, dumb, and ugly.” The man obviously didn’t agree, he grunted and tried taking out the bolt. Laughter from all corners of the tavern chuckled at the sight of a dwarf putting arrogance in his place.

“I think it’s love at first sight, Varric. Be careful, she might cheat on you.” He stifled a snicker, knowing that despite this man shadowing Varric’s stature and had armor on, it would be naive to underestimate Varric Tethras. Hawke leaned against the doorframe, his arms crossed with an amused look on his face.

“She would never!” Varric whispered to his friend in a mock hurt voice before turning his attention back to the man. “Take a hint, human.” He mustered up his most masculine voice, his extravagance no less the same than on the first day Hawke had met him.

And that was when everything went to shit.

A terrible explosion racked the sky, forcing the door Hawke stood by to burst open.

“Shit, looks like trouble found its way through the door!” Hawke sucked in air as the whoosh came in, taking him by surprise. Green light was all one could see, its touch stretched for miles.

“Aww, not again…” Varric lamented before reloading Bianca. The Veil was literally torn open, not just a simple little tear with a couple garden variety demons.

“I don’t know if we can compare this to Kirkwall, Varric…” And then it occurred to him, “The Conclave!” Hawke was already running past his best friend, knowing the Trevelyan’s were there. Hawke could sense hundreds of demons spiraling out from the center of the Breach, but there was time to reach the temple before they arrived at Haven at least. 

His instinct kicked in, and so did guilt immediately. There was no time to help the staggered townspeople of Haven, Hawke had to get to the temple and find Evelyn and Maxwell. Maker, he hoped they were alright…

Varric cursed after Hawke, but his pleas that they were going on a suicide mission were unheard as the mage quickly unstrapped his staff and began running through the gates. Everything was chaos all around him; civilians and soldiers terrified and unsure what to do. Hawke had to tune it all out. He lost track of how many soldiers actually did follow him out into the Frostbacks, but he vaguely remembered seeing the templar Cullen right next to them. In other circumstances, he would have shook the man’s hand for once again fighting with him, but now was not the time.

“Look, out! Demons ahead!” Cullen cried out, pointing with his sword. While he led the squad of men, Hawke and Varric were at the forefront. It was so natural how their fighting patterns came back into play after the time had passed since Kirkwall.

“The smoke is getting bad, Hawke. We need to wait until it clears up to keep travelling up the mountain, or we’ll never make it.” Cullen began to cough, the smoke from the explosion was already starting to affect the group. They were only about a mile down the path from where the temple had been.

“There could be survivors, we have to try!” Hawke aimed his staff and summoned a blizzard powerful enough to freeze the last rage demon in their way. “I’m a mage, I’ll cast barriers to help protect you all. Now, if we’re done debating on the best coarse of action, let’s go!” Hawke’s voice held no trace of humor, light heartedness. This was the Champion of Kirkwall working.

“You know I’m with you, Hawke.” Varric stroked Bianca after wiping the sweat from his brow that had formed from all the running. They caught a spot of luck the last half mile up the path, Varric was undoubtedly grateful for the break.

Everyone fell silent when they saw what remained of the Temple of Sacred Ashes. Almost completely obliterated, what structures remained were growing patches of red lyrium that should not have been there.

“Maker…” Hawke gasped when they saw the burnt corpses, forever encased in positions of terror. “Evelyn! Maxwell!” He tried calling out their names to no avail as the group searched the grounds.

But then there was a sound not far off, Hawke couldn’t place what it was. They ran over, three of Cullen’s soldiers cautiously taking the lead. What Hawke and Varric saw was unbelievable! A rift was opening, and just as it had opened, it was already closing after two limp forms collapsed from it.

“It’s the twins!” Hawke rushed forward despite the soldiers not trusting them. He quickly observed them and knew their states were dire. Being friends with Anders finally paid off in some way. “Shit, they’re burning up. We need to get them down the mountain.” Not many words were exchanged from that point, none of them had any idea of what happened there. But Hawke knew in his gut the Trevelyan’s were innocent. 

All he could think of was frantic thoughts as he carried Evelyn back to Haven. There was a sense of deadly peace to her frail face that comforted and frightened him at the same time. Maxwell was carried between two soldiers, and he fared no better. While Evelyn's breathing was irregular and erratic, Maxwell's breath came in short, fast gasps. Hawke had no idea if they would even make it back in time.

He had to save them.

 


	5. Wake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The twins wrestle with the mark threatening to kill them

Evelyn was unsure how much time had passed since the explosion, the only thing she was certain of was the Trevelyan’s had almost died and she had no bloody memory of it. She vaguely recalled slipping in and out of consciousness, the first glimpse was of Hawke gingerly putting her down on a cot. Mages and healers rushed about her weak form as she struggled to hold onto her life.

“H-Hawke?” She croaked out as she slowly came back to the world. She felt a strange pull in her right hand, a stinging ache that would not go away.

“Sweet Maker’s bosom, she made it!” He rushed to her side despite the healer and an elven man still tending to her.

“What’s going on?” She weakly raised herself up on her elbows. “Where’s my brother??” She looked around the room and he was nowhere in sight.

“It’s alright, your brother is resting next door. You’re the first to wake.” The bald elf spoke first. “It’s been three days.” Evelyn paled at the thought, her reaction grew worse when she peered out the window and saw green illuminating the sky.

Before Hawke could fill in, Cassandra stormed through the door, her face a storm of fury. “We have been waiting for you to wake up, your brother too. You both have many things to answer for!” She stalked forward, ready to grab Evelyn in her conviction, but Hawke stood in her way.

“They had nothing to do with this!” Hawke jumped to protector, and for that Evelyn was thankful.

Evelyn wanted to wrap her head around what had happened at the Conclave, but then the ache in her hand transformed. “What in the Maker is this??” She nearly jumped at the sight of her own hand, now glowing green. Every nerve in her hand felt like it was being pulled at the seems, like a needle undoing its own work.

“Like you don’t know…” Cassandra huffed before turning on her heel and leaving.

“I have to see my brother, I need to make sure he’s going to be okay.” Evelyn was already rising, regardless of permission from her caretakers.

“If you insist, but it’s really not a good idea…” Hawke almost nervously glanced out the window, as if waiting for an angry mob to bust in through the door.

“I don’t care if there’s a rampaging horde of darkspawn out there, I _will_ see my brother.” She sent him an unrelenting glare, grasping Hawke’s offered hand, they slowly made their way out of the cabin.

“Maxwell!” Evelyn rushed to his side. She felt helpless as she watched him twitch in his sleep. She knew Max was having a nightmare, he always twitched when he had them. Evelyn was always there for him to break him of it, but this time she couldn’t help rouse him.

“Hawke, why won’t he wake up?” Evelyn felt tears in her eyes for fear of what might happen. She was helpless. 

“They say he’s in a coma, you were too. The elven mage Solas has stabilized him, it’s just up to your brother now.” Hawke kneeled down beside her and put a hand on her shoulder in consolation.

Evelyn’s guard was completely down now, she couldn’t help as a tear ran down her cheek.

“This wasn’t supposed to happen! I’ve always taken care of him, never let anything bad happen.” She wiped the stray tear away and kissed her brother’s forehead, not caring of the sweat on his brow. “He just wanted so badly to make Father proud, I should have never let him come with me.” Evelyn sighed as she watched Max fight his fever.

“Evelyn...we don’t know what happened up there, but I know none of this was your fault. It’s impossible to think that even a mage could tear open the Veil, but you two? Something foul is at play here.” His words held some comfort for her at least.

Evelyn stayed by her brother’s side the next couple hours, she would only take her eyes off of him long enough to peer up at the giant hole in the sky. That was a whole other level of anxiety she didn’t wish to touch that was inevitable. And then he finally stirred.

“Ugh…”

“Max!” Evelyn immediately perked up when she heard him groan. Hawke was already out of the cabin to fetch the healer.

“What-what’s going on?” You’d think the pair would have time to hug and catch up, but it was like Cassandra’s senses had somehow picked up on the fact that both twins were awake finally. Four soldiers with grim looks on their faces were walking through the door.

“Hey! Where are you taking them?!” Hawke could be seen in the doorway as the soldiers were already moving to take the twins in their custody.

“Be careful with him, he’s not well!” Evelyn didn’t care how they treated her; she had several hours (albeit uncomfortable ones, the mark on her hand slowly becoming more of a pain) being awake, whereas Max had literally just come out of a coma.

“Evelyn, I’m not a child.” Max looked solemnly over at Hawke, the two men exchanged a look as the twins were led out to the Chantry.

The Trevelyan’s were marched to the dungeon, shackles were already being placed on their wrists. Evelyn felt shame passing by the locals, even though she knew in her heart they were innocent. Their looks cut daggers into her chest, nothing had been harder than that feeling.

Evelyn had no idea what was in store for them; but she couldn’t help but feel that that longing for adventure she had all her life had finally gotten her in over her head more than she could manage.

  
  
Maxwell didn’t feel the same regret he knew his sister was probably feeling for the sudden downturn of events they currently faced. While they were being grilled for information by Seeker Pentaghast and Lady Leliana, he felt determination to set things right. He had no idea who killed the Divine, but his sense of duty demanded he find out. But first they had to stop the world from ending.

He exchanged a glance with his sister when they held their glowing hands in front of them. Maxwell’s left hand and Evelyn’s right both glowed in green with equal power he could sense, and in that look they shared, Evelyn knew what had to be done. Regardless if she wanted to go along with it, they were headed back up that mountain to fix the sky.

Cassandra’s words faded into the background as they left Haven’s grounds and began their way up the trail with Hawke in tow.

“Maker, it’s the end of the world!” Panicking soldiers ran the opposite direction as the group headed towards the chaos. A trickle of lingering insecurity made Max envious to feel that same fear he saw in their eyes, but he couldn’t let it in. He had Evelyn to protect once learning the mark on their hand was slowly killing them.

The twins stumbled forward to the ground as the mark flared out of their control; Max felt immeasurable cramping pain that wracked his body; he could do nothing but clutch at his hand hoping the flare up would stop. Evelyn fared no better.

“Maker, shit that hurts!” Ev cried out as Hawke rushed to her side, supporting her weight.

“The pulses are coming faster now.” Cassandra helped Max up as the pain finally began to subside for the moment. “The larger the Breach grows, the more rifts appear, the more demons we face.” Although Cassandra was still suspicious of the two, her tone and behavior towards them had softened her anger enough.

“Speaking of which, how did we survive?” Lyn was the first to speak up when she gathered her bearings.

“We saw you step out of the Fade, then fall unconscious. I don’t know how that was even possible…” Hawke spoke softly, easily bothered by the idea someone had physically been in the Fade.

“Champion, some of the soldiers said they saw a woman in the rift behind them. No one knows who she was.”

“They must have been drinking something harder than I was that night, because I didn’t see anything.” Hawke shrugged and discounted the thought of it. Maxwell suspected that despite his constant Maker-related quips, he was not a very religious man. But Max thought differently; anyone that could have been there to help them in the Fade must have been not of this world.

When it was evident the twins were fine again, the group began travelling back up the hill again. They eventually found their way to their first rift encounter, where the mage Solas, Varric Tethras, and two soldiers struggled to keep demons at bay.

The group sprung to action, Max led the forefront with his longsword swinging at the nearest wraith the mage fought with. Evelyn had her bow drawn from a distance, quickly firing shot after shot at a rage demon while Hawke watched her back.

“Quickly, before more come through!” The battle went by so fast that when the next moment Max found Solas shoving his arm up towards the rift, he barely had time to register what was going on. He felt one with it, like he _was_ the Fade. Coming from someone who had no magical ability, it felt like some sort of miracle to be able to experience something like it.

“What did you do?” Max asked in wonderment after the mark had closed the rift. It was the most peculiar feeling he had ever felt, he couldn’t quite explain what kind of sensation the connection was other than odd.

“ _I_ did nothing. The credit is yours.” The elf calmly said, like it was no big deal. Ev and Max exchanged a look like he was crazy, like their own situation was so ridiculous and this man was just so calm about it.

“I’m assuming I can do that too. How?” His sister asked for them when Max could find no words for what his hand had done.

“Whatever magic opened the Breach in the sky also placed that mark on your hands. While I was tending to you, I theorized the mark might be able to close the rifts opened in the Breach’s wake-and it seems I was correct.” The twins looked at the shimmering green in their hands that did not want to go away on its own.

“Meaning it could also close the Breach itself.” Cassandra spoke hopefully, knowing in her heart the Trevelyan’s were their only hope now.

“Possibly. It seems you hold the key to our salvation.”

“Good to know! Here we thought we would be ass-deep in demons forever.” Varric chimed in with a quip next to his best friend.

“Oh, Varric. Didn’t you miss this?” Hawke regarded the dwarf who was fiddling absentmindedly with his gloves.

“If Bianca’s excited, it’s just like old times, my friend…” When their moment of reprieve was up, the newly established group of six made their next destination to the forward camp where they would go from there.

Meeting the Grand Chancellor did not go as smoothly as Max would have liked. When threatened with execution, it was not Cassandra that spoke first in protest, but Evelyn.

“We haven’t done anything!” Evelyn practically surged forward past Max in anger for the accusations. She had been mostly quiet and relatively calm the trip up the Frostbacks, until someone from the Chantry threatened their lives.

“Lady Trevelyan, allow me. You are a glorified clerk. A bureaucrat!” Cassandra was much better at containing her disgust at his apparent entitlement, but from what Max saw of her defiant spirit, he liked it. It was attractive.

“And you are a thug. But a thug who supposedly serves the Chantry!” As the chancellor debated with Leliana and Cassandra the best course of action, Maxwell stepped to the side with Evelyn to speak candidly for the first time.

“This is ridiculous.” Evelyn looked over her shoulder and gave a tired sigh. “We’re wasting time!”

“Just be patient, we can trust Cassandra.” Before she could reply, the sky’s wound rumbled and their marks were flaring, like calling back in answer.

“How do you two think we should proceed?” Cassandra turned back to them, relieving Max that they were finally done bickering. He wanted to take the most direct path, and he knew Evelyn would agree. Whatever was the quickest way, that’s what was most important.

“Ev?” Max looked at her, unsure if he should take the lead. She said nothing in reply, this was his moment.

“I say we charge with the soldiers. We probably won’t survive long enough for a trial, so we’re doing this our way.” Maxwell Trevelyan grasped his sister’s hand in good luck, hoping this wasn’t their last day together alive.  


	6. Games

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Evelyn and Hawke flirt on their travels recruiting for the Inquisition.

Weeks went by since that fateful day at the temple, the Inquisition had formed and the people had dubbed the Trevelyan’s their savior, their Heralds of Andraste. And Evelyn hated it. She didn’t care to be looked at as some instrument of holy intervention, regardless if it had saved their necks, but she was slowly getting used to it day by day.

There was an advantage to there being two Heralds though; while Max took to task meeting with the Chantry in Val Royeax alongside Cassandra, Evelyn worked on recruiting for the Inquisition alongside Hawke. She scoured the Hinterlands looking for ways to stabilize the area and help the refugees, then set out to recruit a Grey Warden named Blackwall to their group before heading out to the Storm Coast.

“We shouldn’t be too far off from the coast now, we could make camp here.” Evelyn was tired of travelling over the last few weeks, after meeting this mercenary captain, she would waste no time hustling back to Haven as soon as they were able.

“The rain looks like it’s letting up finally.” Hawke shook the rain from his brown locks and proceeded to unpack their essentials from the horses.

“Conveniently after the fact of riding all day through it…” Evelyn sarcastically huffed to herself as she looked around for firewood to use. The last few weeks on the road with Hawke had been interesting, Evelyn found that he was the only person besides her brother that treated her like herself and not just the ‘Herald’.

She would catch his lingering looks and flirtatious comments here and there, but usually just shrugged it off, but lately it had been getting harder to deny Hawke. It wasn’t that he was very aggressive, his words and gestures always seemed so perfectly placed as if he knew what he was doing and exactly how to do it. Evelyn knew he was up to something, that much she was sure of.

“Do you ever take that armor off?” Evelyn asked when they later sat at the fire eating their rations.

“Wondering what I look like under all this, are you?” He sent a devilish wink her way, making her blush.   

“You wish!” She rolled her eyes and smiled at him, silently wishing the red feeling in her cheeks would go away.

She liked Hawke, but found it hard to trust him. Growing up a noble in Ostwick gave her plenty of experience dealing with suitors that tried charming their way into her bedroom in hopes of an elevated status. She obviously didn’t think that was necessarily the case with Hawke, but the lack of knowing what his real intentions were still put her on edge.

“You should smile more, you look beautiful when you do.” Hawke spoke softly then as he warmed his hands by the fire.

“As opposed I’m ugly if I don’t?” Evelyn bit back with a laugh, deciding she would make it hard for him if he was going to keep pursuing her.

“Ouch, you spit fire out, are you sure you’re not a mage?” Hawke feigned a wounded ego with a hand to his heart before winking playfully at her.

“Har har, I don’t have a magical bone in my whole body. This hand is the full extent of any abilities I’ll ever have.” She proceeded to inspect her arrowheads while they had time, making sure the edges were sharpened. “No, I just need my bow at my back and I’m just fine without magic.”

“I’ll keep in mind how sharp they are if I ever decide to cross you, though I’m not very worried.” He said nonchalantly, knowing it would chafe at her own pride.

“HA! Go ahead and keep up that arrogance, see how far that gets you with me, Hawke.” They continued their playful banter into the night before they both drifted off to the sound of crackling fire and crickets in the background.

 

The next morning they packed up their things and it wasn’t long before they found the nearest Inquisition camp by the coastline. Hawke was impressed with the physical prowess of the Qunari mercenary they hired, but was immediately put on guard when he told them he was a Ben-Hassrath agent.

“Look, I’ve had plenty of experience with Qunari before, I’m just saying we should watch him.” Hawke had respected the Arishok, but that didn’t mean anything when it came down to the fact that the Qunari were who they were and compromise was not something in their vocabulary. Evelyn may have been fooled by Iron Bull’s casual attitude, but Hawke wasn’t.

“Are you questioning my judgment? He’s in charge of a respected company, the Inquisition could use fighters like him.” Evelyn crossed her arms stubbornly once they were out of earshot from Bull’s group.

“No...not exactly.” Hawke stood awkwardly, trying to put his words carefully to not offend her too much, which was a hard task because he usually had an easy time offending women he was attracted to. “I’m just saying I may or may not know better than you when it comes to this particular group of people?” He scrunched his nose uncomfortably waiting for the inevitable protest of indignation.

“Oh, then let me just go tell Cassandra and Leliana they got it all wrong when they put me in charge of recruiting, and they should have the great _Champion of Kirkwall_ do it instead!” Evelyn raised her eyebrow and gave him a pointed look.

“That’s rather uncalled for, rubbing that in my face... _Lady Trevelyan!_ ” He knew she hated being referred to by her title, which was one of the reasons he was attracted to her. She was nobility, it would be against the ‘rules’ of the society she grew up in to be associated with someone like him, but he did love to shatter glass ceilings. And she was exactly the same way. That was just one of the reasons he was discovering about Evelyn to be incredibly sexy.

“You’re absolutely ridiculous sometimes, Hawke.” She begrudgingly rolled her eyes at him before storming off, leaving a smirk on the mage’s face.

“Well done, Garrett. Hawke: 1 Evelyn: 0!” He knew she wasn’t really mad at him, she just liked to pretend she was.

They continued to play coy games with each other over their trip back to Haven. Hawke had plenty of practice dealing with Aveline, Merrill, and Isabela (she was a particular headache at times) so he was no stranger to mind games with the opposite sex. Slowly she began to drop her guard, if Evelyn hadn’t been, she would have already put her foot down for him to stop. And so it went on, Garrett Hawke chipped away at her guard and enjoyed his time with the ‘Heraldess’ of the Inquisition.  

 


	7. Pride

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maxwell goes to the Ghislain estate with Cassandra and later the Inquisition plans what to do about the mages and templars.

“Sera, you should probably wait outside.” Cassandra had no qualms about wanting the unorthodox elf to stay far away from the nobles before they entered Madame De Fer’s saloon. Max couldn’t blame her after their meeting in Val Royeaux.

“Oh fine, have fun with your arse biscuit nobles!” The elf snorted walking away from the estate gate, leaving just Cassandra and Max alone.

“Good choice, I can’t possibly imagine what fun Sera would have if we let her go in with us!” Max said to Cassandra who strode forward to enter the mansion. The last few weeks the two had spent a lot of time together, but Max had failed to get much further than basic polite speech with the conservative seeker. He wanted to change that, but never knew how to, so he settled for what he was given from the Nevarran.

“You should take the lead, Madame de Fer did request to speak with you personally, after all.” Cassandra looked around the foyer with no particular interest for the frill of nobility, yet Maxwell felt right at home. It wasn’t that he lavished the lifestyle like these Orlesians did, it was just something he was used to being around.

“Lord Trevelyan of Ostwick, representing the Inquisition.” Maxwell’s announcement got the attention of two nearby Orlesian nobles.

“A pleasure, ser. We so rarely have a chance to meet anyone new. It is always the same crowd at these parties. So, you must be a guest of Madame de Fer, or are you here for Duke Bastien?”

“Are you here on business? I have heard the most curious tales of you. I cannot imagine half of them are true!”  

“Ah, well I’m sure…” Max was never one to gloat much, but then he thought of the Josephine’s advice that every word spoken in favor of the Inquisition mattered, even the exaggerated ones. “Everything you’ve heard is completely true, my lady.”

“Better and better! The Inquisition should attend more of these parties!”

“The Inquisition! What a load of pig shit!” Max would have kept up the idle chat with the nobles if they hadn’t been interrupted by a man at the top of the nearby staircase.

“Washed up sisters and crazed seekers. No one can take them seriously.” Max glanced over his shoulder to see a fuming Cassandra barely holding back her disgust for the pompous noble, calling them out for the whole room to see.

“Everyone knows it’s just an excuse for a bunch of political outcasts to grab power.” The man met Maxwell at the ground floor, standing arrogantly but Trevelyan would have none of it. He refused to let this man walk over him.

“This is a divine calling! We’re trying to restore peace and find who murdered the Divine!”

“Of course you are. I’m sure your army is scouring the hills for her murderer as we speak.” His light sarcasm did nothing to lessen the rising anger Max felt in his chest, and the man stepping within his personal space didn’t defuse the situation either. “We know what your Inquisition truly is. If you were a man of honor, you’d step outside and answer the charges.” Max automatically moved his hand to his sword hilt when he saw the noble reach for the weapon on his back, but before Max had a chance to react, someone was already stepping in.

“My dear Marquis.” A regal woman appeared on the second floor to intercede, she cast a freezing magic on the marquis, startling Max in the process. “How unkind of you to use such language in _my_ house, to _my_ guest.” Madame de Fer made her way almost seductively down the stairs to join the pair, her walk only portraying an exuberant amount of confidence and experience.

“You know such rudeness is intolerable.” Max exchanged looks with Cassandra. He could tell she didn’t trust the mage, but was glad the man was being put in his place.

“Madame Vivienne, I humbly beg your pardon…” At that point, Max was beginning to feel like a third wheel to this whole thing, trying not to stand around like an awkward buffoon while the mage berated the man.

“You should, whatever am I going to do with you, my dear?” Lady Vivienne turned to address Max. “My lord, you’re the wounded party in this unfortunate affair, what would you have me do with this foolish, foolish man?”

“I think the Marquis has seen the error of his ways, Lady Vivienne.” Max had to hold back from rolling his eyes as the mage dramatically let him go.

After his meeting with the enchanter was finished, Maxwell met back up with Cassandra in the foyer.

“You handled that situation well. You stood up for what was right and still you chose to spare his life. Even though you could have punished him.” For the first time that night, Cassandra looked directly into Max’s eyes. Her expression softened, like the careful guard of a seasoned seeker was starting to peel away at the edges.

“Thank you, Lady Cassandra, I appreciate that.” His gaze narrowed in on her lips, the curve on top subtly reminded him of a heart. He kept staring until Cassandra awkwardly coughed.

“Yes, well we better be on our way then!” She shifted on her heel and they were headed back to their horses, and not another word was said about it.

With two members for the Inquisition conveniently recruited after their trip to Val Royeaux, it was time to move forward gathering enough power to close the Breach. The question of who to approach, however, was a more delicate task.

“Luckily, the Inquisition has two Herald’s. We have time to meet with both the mages and templars!” Max was the first one to suggest this idea at the war table once everyone had made it back to Haven.

“It’s not a bad idea, it could be done.” Leliana and Josephine were the most amiable on the idea, whereas Cullen and Evelyn had their doubts.

“We’d be splitting our forces down the middle, we couldn’t guarantee there’d be enough backup if things went wrong.” Max couldn’t deny that he was a little intimidated by the commanders expertise on an area like this, but one reassuring look from his sister gave him courage to speak up.

“We’ve had reports of the mages joining forces with a magister in Redcliffe. We can’t let that stand, and we know after our encounter with the Lord Seeker something’s not right with the templars. We have to try getting both groups. Even if we don’t necessarily need both to close the Breach, it’s the right thing to do.” He stood firm in his conviction, earning an approving smile from both Evelyn and Cassandra, making him almost beam with pride.

“Well, then. How shall we go about this? I need to make preparations.” Leliana said, regarding both Max and Evelyn.

“Looks like we’re going solo again, brother. I’m going after the mages.” Evelyn spoke first, just as Hawke walked in. She knew him all too well to go after the templars with Cassandra.

“And you’ll have a few of us to tag along. We’re not letting you take any chances in Redcliffe on your own.” Behind Hawke stood Varric, Solas, and Blackwall.

“Good, then I’ll just assume the others will be going to Therinfal with you, brother.” Evelyn patted Max on the shoulder as the meeting adjourned. The room emptied, leaving just Cullen and Max the last ones to leave.

“Maxwell, I was hoping to have a word privately?” The commander almost looked sheepish, which surprised Max since he always seemed so put together as a key part of the Inquisition.

“Sure, Cullen. What’s up?” Max crossed his arms, curious to why he had to talk to him in private.

“This is a little embarrassing, but I was wondering if you could help me with something.” He ran a hand through his blonde tresses. “I was hoping you could tell me what flowers your sister likes.”

“Oh, well I certainly wasn’t expecting that.” Max gave a short laugh, not surmising before the former templar looked at his sister that way.

“She’s never been big on flowers, but I do know she likes the ones that bloom from the crystal grace plant.” Maxwell was certainly approving of this change, he knew the commander was an honorable man, but he didn’t know how his sister would feel.

Max went on with preparations to leave within the next couple of days for Therinfal when it dawned on him, Hawke was interested in Evelyn too!

“Maker, she’s gonna kill me if she finds out!” Maxwell lamented to himself when he realized it was his fault that two men were now vying for his sister’s attention.

“Or she doesn’t have to know…” A devilish smirk pulled at the corner of his mouth, Max thought this new development would certainly make things more interesting around Haven, as if it needed it to begin with.


	8. Chaos

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things go bad at Redcliffe and Therinfal Redoubt for the Inquisition. Part 1 of In hushed whispers/Champions of the just

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haven't had a chance to work in any smut yet beyond harmless flirting, but I promise I'll be getting to it soon.

Arriving in Redcliffe with a relatively small band of Inquisition soldiers accompanying them, Evelyn first sought out the nearest Inquisition camp outside the settlement to gather intel.

“My lady, we’ve been secretly exchanging information with Grand Enchanter Fiona over the last few weeks over a potential alliance. There was no word of any Tevinter presence, until recently.”

“What do you mean, soldier?” Evelyn was unsure what he was getting at. From all accounts previously, it sounded like the Inquisition might be a welcome ally, until word of a Tevinter force came out of nowhere, all communication had ceased.

“Once this magister came into play, things...changed. Now it seems like we’re an unwelcome force here.”

“That’s odd, considering not long ago we were potential allies. My brother said he spoke to Fiona in Val Royeaux.” Evelyn kept to herself the unsettling feeling in the pit of her stomach when the scout mentioned there was an active rift right outside the city gate that seemed to distort time itself.

“If Grand Enchanter Fiona was still expecting us, she’s pretending to not know. We managed to arrange use of the tavern to speak with the magister, hopefully that will clear things up.” The scout bowed his head to her and left her to speak with her party.

“We should investigate this rift he spoke of, it sounds potentially more dangerous than others we’ve encountered.” Solas would have made it a priority for them if it hadn’t been on the way, so that was their next stop before entering Redcliffe.

“The Veil is weaker here than in Haven, and not merely weak but altered in a way I have not seen.” Solas inspected the area after they dispatched of the demons.

“Just lovely. I’m willing to bet this has something to do with a certain magister, I’m definitely calling it, Varric.” Hawke said disapprovingly, having a bad feeling about all of it.

“Don’t worry, Hawke, I’m sure Evelyn will protect you from the big bad magister.” Varric laughed at the thought.

“Will you, please? I’ll be having nightmares all week!” Hawke turned to Evelyn and clasped his fingers together as they walked into town.

“My dearest Hawke, there are some things my bow can’t do. I’m afraid you’re on your own!” She cracked a smile at the playfulness of it until Hawke turned it around on her.

“I’m sure there are plenty of things you could do for me…” He said barely under his breath, making Blackwall squirt out the water he was in the middle of chugging down from his canteen.

“Cheeky this one is!” Blackwall let out a booming laugh as he wiped the water from his beard.

“Garrett Hawke!” Evelyn’s face turned beet red at Hawke’s suggestion. He was driving her crazy, regardless of his undeniable charm. Evelyn didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of knowing comments like that got under her skin in a way no man had done before. And Evelyn Trevelyan was stubborn just like her father, so giving him that win was not an option.

“Okay, okay, I think you’ve teased the poor girl enough for a week, Hawke.” Varric tried to sound serious, but his facade was failing as he let out a laugh.

“I dare say for a lifetime! And I’m not a girl, Varric.” She sent him an easy going chiding look and redirected her focus back to making their way to the meeting.

“I just can’t believe you made me spit out my water…” Blackwall said hung up, Solas rolled his eyes.

The next hour they found out who the magister controlling the mages was: Gereon Alexius, and what they didn’t find out through their meeting with him, they discovered from his former apprentice. A mage named Dorian Pavus, he came off putting on airs, Evelyn could certainly tell he was a confident man. His friend, Felix Alexius was much milder in manner compared to him.

“Evelyn, you know how I said that note saying we were in danger was mysterious?” Varric asked.

“I recall you going,  _ ‘ooh very mysterious _ !’” Hawke gave his best Varric impression to lighten the mood, despite all the dark things they had recently learned of time magic and indentured mages.

“This wasn’t the kind of mysterious I was going for.” Varric furrowed his brow, Evelyn agreed.

“My father’s joined a cult. Tevinter supremacists. They call themselves ‘Venatori’. And I can tell you one thing: whatever he’s done for them, he’s done it to get to you.”

“I’m flattered, really.” Evelyn said deadpan, not in the least bit worried for her own safety as usual.

“You know you’re his target. Expecting the trap is the first step to turning it to your advantage. I can’t stay in Redcliffe, but whenever you’re ready to deal with Alexius, I want to be there. I’ll be in touch.” Dorian left out the back way of the Chantry to avoid being seen until the right time, leaving Evelyn’s party to plan.

“I have a bad feeling about this.” Evelyn sighed when she spoke in confidence to Hawke.

“That’s why you have me here to protect you, I’m all you need.” His words were his usual roguish charm, but his demeanor had changed to one of comfort, which she welcomed. She didn’t need his protection in the time to come, but it felt nice to have.

Evelyn looked up at him and grasped his hand, choosing not to reply back with her usual biting wit she always countered him with. She just hoped things were going smoother for her brother in Therinfal Redoubt.

  
  


The tension in the air was palpable from the moment they had stepped into the fortress, there was no denying it. Max went through the motions exchanging pleasantries with the nobles that had come to demand the templars do their duty, but the back of his mind was busy observing their surroundings.

The only person outside of the Inquisition force Max felt was trustworthy was Ser Barris, but that proved to not be enough when things went south. Cassandra, Sera, and Iron Bull had accompanied Max to the building where the Lord Seeker was supposed to appear, while Vivienne kept up appearances with the nobles, doing what she did best.

“The Lord Seeker had a plan, but the Herald ruined it by arriving with purpose.” Knight-Captain Denam, though Max had never known the man before, was definitely acting suspiciously. When fighting could be heard erupting out in the courtyard, that confirmed Maxwell’s suspicions.

“It sowed too much dissent.” He stood still with his arms clasped behind his back, not in the least bit worried of what was going on outside. Max’s hand went to his sword, ready for a fight.

“Knight-Captain, I must know what’s going on!” Ser Barris strode forward, he was completely clueless, but Max knew what was happening.

“Step away from him, Ser Barris!” Max drew his sword, the hairs on the back of his neck stood up. Sera was acting twitchy while Cassandra and Bull were just as ready as the herald.

“You were all supposed to be changed! Now we must purge the questioning knights!” He summoned nearby templars from the corners of the room.

“Abernache, look out!” Max tried to shove the man out of the way, but he was too late to save him from the arrow flying towards his face.

“The Elder One is coming. No one will leave Therinfal who isn’t stained with red!”

“Well, shit.” Max sighed, grabbing his shield from his back and sword up front. Cassandra stepped to his side, also ready.

“Finally, enough talking!” Iron Bull rushed to the front and without a warning, swung his axe into a corrupt templar, starting the fight.

Max dashed to the side when a sword when in for his heart, making the man miss and give him the chance to bring his shield slamming down on his wrist. He howled in pain, giving him just the moment to bring his sword into stab the man.

“Ser Barris!” Cassandra called out when she saw the man struggle with two templars. Max was busy fighting another one, but he could see her rush forward to his aid. Max’s sword played with one corrupt templars blade, but his attention became more diverted when he saw Cassandra get tripped over her feet by a chair getting knocked her way, causing her to fall over.

“Cassandra, watch out!” Max called out, his energy was renewed as he shield bashed the man fighting him and ran over to her aid just before a templar overwhelmed her. A fire had already started on the second floor of the building, spreading fast as the air started to grow thick with smoke. 

Cassandra gave him a look of gratitude as he helped her up after killing the templar, but it was not long lived. A burning column from the second floor came tumbling down right in their direction, there was almost no time to react. Max shoved the both of them out of the way, sending the pair to land hard on a bale of hay to safety.

“Don’t get used to saving me, Herald.” She grunted, pulling herself up to her elbows as Iron Bull finished off the last templar.

“Would you have preferred I let you get crushed by a burning chunk of wood, my lady?” Max was slightly frustrated by her stubbornness, now wasn’t the time for it.

“Never mind that,” She turned her attention back to the situation at hand. “Is the Knight-Captain alive?” The pair rose from the hay and regrouped in the center of the room.

“Barely. If you use a healing potion, he may survive. If he even deserves it.”

“We’ll figure out what to do with him at a later time, let’s just bind him for now. We need to get outside and find the Lord Seeker.” Max decided then, and they fought their way back outside where they found Vivienne lending her support to the uncorrupted templars.

“Darling, so good of you to join us!” She twisted and twirled her staff with her signature freezing magic, holding her own against the horde of enemies that faced her.

“We were tied up…” Max stopped midsentence when an ominous voice rang out across the grounds.

“ _ Prepare them! Guide them to me! _ ” The tone of voice sent shivers down Max’s spine, he didn’t need magical talent to surmise that voice was not human.

“Herald?” Cassandra stood confused that he trailed off.

“ _ The Herald of Andraste! It’s time we get better acquainted! Come. Show me what sort of man you really are.” _

“Did you hear that? It sounded like the Lord Seeker!” When the group insisted there was no voice, Max’s suspicion grew ten fold. He hated when his gut proved him right, and so it did when they climbed those steps where the Lord Seeker stood.

  
  


Hawke really didn’t like this Tevinter bastard. His smug face and patronizing tone thought it was hiding well his real intentions, but little did he know they were already one step ahead of him.

“Are we mages to have no voice in deciding our fate?” Fiona asked, Hawke being Hawke just had to chime in on that.

“Yes, that would be just grand if they could have an opinion if they’re going to be slaves or not.” He rolled his eyes, not caring if it irked the man. He tuned the rest of the conversation out, choosing to covertly observe their surroundings, one that conveniently had them surrounded by Venatori guards.

This man sat on his throne,  _ Redcliffe’s throne _ , like he owned the place and could just take control of everything; it really annoyed him. If Hawke’s cousin could see this place now, he’d be seriously kicking some ass that same place he had defended from undead and a demon ten years ago was overtaken by a Tevinter magister.

Evelyn shared Hawke’s disdain for taking part in the whole debacle, she cut to the chase as soon as it was appropriate, leaving Hawke to ready himself for a fight possibly. Oh, and of course it happened! Hawke knew these things never turned out right, even when planned perfectly.

One moment they were talking, the next Venatori guards were being taken out and Alexius was hovering a magical amulet in their faces. Hawke and Dorian sprung forward when the danger was real, they had to stop Alexius. Hawke stepped to Evelyn and tried to shield her, but it was futile.

Time magic was a bitch.


	9. Trial

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max and Evelyn are tried by dark possibilities, also, Hawke is having a bad hair day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I had a guest review on my other site I post on saying I was moving things forward too fast. Well, while I do appreciate that feedback, on one hand, I did give a disclaimer in the beginning I wasn't going to focus a ton on all the missions. Because I want this to be more character based, and I'm over writing really long fanfiction just for the sake of 'covering' every single thing that happens in the game. It's tedious, and its not what I want to do with this story.
> 
> That being said, I am thinking about making this into a little series and breaking up the story. Maybe Skyhold will be the second part for my Trevelyan's story, I haven't made up my mind yet.

“At _last_.” Lucius jerked Maxwell through into the Fade, the power behind his hands was overbearing. Everything happened so fast, the warrior didn’t even have time to breathe before he found himself in another realm. Fear was Maxwell’s best friend at this point when he observed his surroundings.

_Maker…_

Maxwell’s thoughts echoed from his mind out into the chamber, the word repeated several times. Maxwell couldn’t move his feet! Before him were four columns and in the center were several burning bodies encased in fear. He struggled to move, his feet felt like someone had poured cement over them, but there was nothing covering them.

 _“You have failed me, son. You will never be the child I wanted. If only you could be more like Evelyn.”_ A vision of their father appeared in front of him, Max was forced to listen to the mocking. Bann Trevelyan never actually said those words so directly, but his lack of interest in Maxwell’s endeavors had always made that clear.

“Everything I’ve done has been for you! You…” Max’s face grew hot, but had to stop himself, this was not his father. “Get out of my head!”

 _“Ha! Finally got some guts to stand up to me. I am getting to know you better now…”_ The vision faded away, but still Max could not move. Evelyn appeared right behind him then, her daggers dangerously close to his throat.

 _“Dear brother, what have you gotten yourself into this time? Tsk, tsk.”_ Evelyn’s visage was cruel, her voice dead with a coldness that he knew was not truly hers.

“Who are you??” Max asked bewildered, starting to lose his grip on the situation.

“ _We want to know you better.”_ Cassandra appeared out of thin air next to Evelyn, the pair smiled wickedly at his helplessness. Their voices dripped with disdain, their tone took on a demonic note that sent the hairs on Max’s neck to stand up cold. Cassandra ran a finger along his jawline teasingly before returning next to Evelyn.

“You are not Cassandra. And you are NOT my sister!” He let his anger overtake him, he was furious at the impersonations and mockery.

He found the strength finally to move when he surged forward and pushed the women away from him. They disappeared in a puff of smoke, but their taunting laughter lingered in the hall as it echoed away from him.

“Finally…” Max whispered to himself, glad he could finally move on and find a way out of the prison. Behind him was blocked by some sort of red lyrium, so the only way was forward. He passed through the columns and found Cullen and Josephine standing idly by before Leliana appeared.

 _“Is this shape useful? Will it let me know you? Everything tells me about you. So will this: watch.”_ The impersonator walked behind Cullen and held a knife to his throat.

“I know what you are, demon. Am I supposed to yield to your tricks and scream in terror next?” Max did his best to keep his composure, he didn’t want to give the demon any more power.

 _“Scream in terror next_.” The demon slit the throat, Max had to stifle a look of disgust watching black blood spurt out before it proceeded to imitate his words. This demon enjoyed changing forms; it was tricky, yes, but Max had no intention of paying mind to its attempts to rattle him.

 _“Being you will be so much more interesting than being the lord seeker.”_ The demon had switched to Josephine before briefly disappearing. “ _Do you know what the Inquisition can become_?” Her voice startled him from behind. “ _You’ll see. When I’m done, the Elder One will kill you and your sister and ascend. Then I will be you.”_

“Elder One??” He had no idea what that name meant, but he was about to find out. No doubt the reason behind the Divine’s murder.

 _“He is between things. Mortal once, but no longer.”_ She laughed before coming back to his side. “ _Glory is coming. And the Elder One wants you to serve him like everyone else: by dying in the right way.”_

“Keep talking, then. This works both ways.”

 _“I am not your toy! I am Envy, and I will know you!”_ This time it was Cullen’s form. “ _Tell me, ‘Herald’, in your mind. Tell me what you think! Tell me what you feel!”_

A dark copy of the herald stood before him, one doubled over in pain, and then next a knife appeared in Max’s hand. He had to remind himself none of it was real, but it was hard. _“Tell me what you see.”_ And then, finally, the demon was gone.

But Max was still stuck, he had to get out. He wasn’t going to let Envy take over his body and hurt anyone. At first Max wished Evelyn was with him, but he quickly struck that thought down. He wouldn’t wish this prison on anyone he cared for.

Max painstakingly made his way through several rooms with familiar faces. The first was when Cassandra had interrogated the twins in the chantry dungeon, the second was of a future where Envy posed as the Herald.

_“Our reach begins to match my ambition-but we will strive for more.”_

“I wouldn’t say that!” Max couldn’t help but scrunch his nose indignantly by the pompous showing.

 _“Are you bothered by imperfection?”_ Max mentally kicked himself for giving Envy anything as it laughed to his dismay.

Max continued through the dark realm, ignoring the best he could even though Envy’s voice was all around him. He suppressed the urge to reply when it asked him why he chose the people’s flag over the templar and chantry’s, despite the choice surprising even himself.

At one point the former two were all he saw himself doing, but he lost the passion to follow those paths, they weren’t what really made him happy. Although both careers helped people in some way, he wanted to help people on his own terms.  

“Envy is hurting you.” A soft, youthful voice called out to Max when he entered an empty room. It was invisible, like Envy’s, but he sensed it was something else.

“Mirrors on mirrors on memories. A face it can feel but not fake. I want to help. You, not Envy.”

“Who are you?” Max searched out, waiting for whoever it was to show themselves.

“I’ve been watching. I’m Cole. We’re inside you. Or I am. You’re always inside you.” Max more or less understood what he was getting at. Usually when an invisible boy shows himself standing upside down on the ceiling, one would freak out, but Max was stuck in some weird Fade prison ruled by a demon, so no questions were asked.

“This ‘Envy’ is starting to get really creepy. It wants to be me!”

“Yes. It twisted the commanders, forced their fury, their fight. They’re red inside.” Cole moved to sit right side up. “Anyway, you’re frozen. Envy is trying to take your face, I heard it and reached out, and then in, and then I was here.”

“Well, you haven’t tried to mess with my head the way _it_ has, so how do I get out?”

“It’s your head. I hoped _you’d_ know how to stop it.” Max laughed, just when he thought he had help, he really didn’t have anything.

“Well, I don’t.”

“All of this is Envy. If you keep going, Envy stretches. It takes strength to make more. Being many, too many, and Envy breaks down, you break out.” It would appear that Cole really did know, why he didn’t say that to begin with was beyond Max.

They were going to tire Envy into submission and break back into reality.

X

“Aww shit!” Hawke exclaimed when he happened to land conveniently in a cell somewhere in the castle’s dungeon. Hawke groaned from the impact, he was definitely going to be bruised all over the next few days.

“What the hell is going on here…” He looked through the cell doors and saw how everything was in disarray, and there was red lyrium! Thankfully there was none in the cell he was stuck in, but it appeared to be in all the others. Where was Evelyn? And the others? Whatever that portal was they were drawn into, he should have been with them.

“Who’s there??” A scared familiar voice called out next to him. It sounded distorted, pained.       

“Is that you, Warden Blackwall? It’s me, Hawke.”

“You must be playing some cruel joke…” Blackwall’s voice sighed, confusing the mage.

“Uh, no. Garrett Hawke here, here to woo the ladies. Although I am having a bit of a bad hair day.” Garrett mentally patted himself on the back for the opportunity to use the line, considering his hair was drenched in sewer water.

“Maker’s breath, it _is_ you! Only Garrett Hawke could sound that vain. You’re supposed to be dead!” Before he could explain to the bewildered mage what he was on about, Dorian and Evelyn finally showed up. Hawke breathed a sigh of relief.

“Hey, over here! Get me out of this stinking hole, will you, beautiful?” Hawke flashed his winning smile to the relieved woman.

“If I wasn’t happy to see that grizzled face, I might savor seeing you in there a little longer.” She crouched down to the cell and worked on picking the lock before going to Blackwall’s who was still in shock.

In normal circumstances, they would have continued their flirting, but now was not the time. They learned they were thrown forward in time a whole year and everything had fallen apart. And worse yet, all three of them had ‘perished’ in this dark future they were in. Their only option was to get to Alexius and use his amulet to stop this Elder One’s plan.

“Evelyn, are you alright?” Hawke looked at her concerned, she looked very tired.

“It’s nothing, just a headache. Being pulled through that portal has me off my game.” She rubbed at her eyebrow as the group travelled through the lower levels of the castle.

“It’s probably because you’re not a mage. Hawke and I feel fine.” Dorian chimed in.

“Being stuck here, let’s just use the term ‘fine’ very loosely!” Hawke gave a dry laugh before they heard another familiar voice in what was probably a torture chamber.

“Is that the Nightingale?” Evelyn asked, already drawing her bow as they approached the door.

“Only one way to find out.” Hawke didn’t bother waiting, he kicked down the door and their suspicion was correct as they witnessed Leliana strangling a Venatori guard with her legs since she was chained up.

What had they done to make her face look so...aged? She looked like an eighty year old woman that had been through hell. Hawke chose to avoid the bard’s haunting, but still very much alive gaze and brought his focus back to their mission.

Everything about this place, this time was wrong for Hawke. This future was unnatural, made his skin crawl in ways he never thought were possible, and so it only served as a motivator to keep the group moving to the throne room. They had only managed to find Blackwall, Solas, and Leliana alive, a grim discovery that made Hawke miss his best friend. Probably all of his friends were dead…

“Hawke!” Evelyn’s voice cut through Hawke’s ruminations.

“Shit, sorry. This red lyrium is giving me the creeps.” He shook off his worry, the only choice was to fight with everything they had to stop the Elder One.

“Stay by my side, I’ll protect you.” How the tables had turned that it was now her chance to tell him that. Evelyn shot a warm look his direction, maybe she sensed his stress, but Hawke was grateful. The pale green, almost grey tint to her eyes shined in the dim dungeon like a beacon.

“Protection from Evelyn Trevelyan, famed herald of the Inquisition? I can’t turn that down.”  Hawke brought his guard back up, flashing her a confident smile. The Champion sure as hell wasn’t going to let this future stand.

X

Max was almost out of the demon’s prison, he was so close! Their idea seemed to be working, he turned up at a fog covered forest to Envy’s chagrin. Max heard the same fighting from the templars in the real world, so he knew they weren’t far off. His resolve and Cole’s guidance had gotten him this far, he wasn’t going to let Envy win this day!

“We’re almost there, Cole!” Max’s confidence was already back, he knew Envy’s power was waning.

“Keep going up.” Cole echoed in his mind as Max ran up stone steps back into Therinfal’s sphere.

He easily cut through fake soldiers and demons, they disappeared almost as quickly as they appeared trying to hinder Max’s path back to where Envy had originally trapped him.

“Blessed are they who stand before the corrupt and the wicked and do not falter.” He recognized where he was now, so close. Envy let out a shriek in protest, Max had won. “Blessed are the peacekeepers, the champions of the just!” Max was now where he had started this whole mess.

“ _Unfair, unfair_!” Envy’s dark herald came up to him like a child having a fit. “ _That thing kept you whole, kept you from giving me your shape_!” Despite its loss, it held out one last time, raising Maxwell up against the great hall doors. Max felt nothing, because he gave it nothing, so he wasn’t nervous at this point.

“What could you have gained from being me?” He struggled in its grasp, fighting to go home.

“ _What could you gain? What...ugh_!” Max almost wanted to laugh at the creature, it was pathetic. “ _We’ll start again. More pain this time. The Elder One still comes._ ” Envy conjured up a shadowed version of the being he spoke of.

“It’s frightened of you.” Cole spoke calmly, standing on the hand of a nearby statue, his size now minature.

“ _Get out of_ -” Max had had enough of this demon’s charade. He shoved its hand down and landed a hard headbutt, and that was all he needed to escape. A white light changed everything, and instantly Max was back in his own body where he had left off in Therinfal Redoubt.

Envy’s true form was there, it was monstrous. Its long, lithe body contorted under itself, screeching at the group before fleeing past a barrier of magic in the great hall.

“The lord seeker!” Ser Barris said astonished. Max wouldn’t have believed what they saw either if he hadn’t been its captive.

“No. An imposter. I’m sorry. An envy demon replaced the lord seeker.” Max gave his condolences, though he was busy in his mind thinking that this was long from over.

“Envy! Then the lord seeker…” Cassandra’s voice was a lament, her connection to the order was still very much prominent. Nevertheless, Max refused to believe the order was done for.

“Is caged or dead. Maker.” Barris only took a moment before moving onto the more important matter. “It used the red lyrium to corrupt the order, didn’t it? I knew that miserable stuff was risky! They often give us new kinds of lyrium. Our commanders...some used the red stuff first, to prove it was harmless.” This statement made Max glad he never fully joined the order, he wouldn’t have wanted to put that in his body.

“The demon took down the order from the top, smart move.” Iron Bull grunted, not in the least bit worried of the debacle they faced.

“We will fix it!” Ser Barris resolved, “Templar! What is Envy!” He addressed the untouched templars in the room.

“A coward, brother!”

“It studies, makes less mistakes. But most of all, it hides.”

“What would you have us do, Ser Barris?” Max was ready for whatever came next. The templar order didn’t deserve this end, they were a noble group worth preserving. They may be weak now, but Maxwell Trevelyan would help ensure they survived this day. And then the Inquisition would have its power to seal the Breach.

X

Evelyn was angry, but not her typical sort of angry she usually felt. It was a quiet anger that seethed beneath the surface, slowly surfacing like boiling bubbles in a cauldron. The more the group learned of this abomination called a future, the more her anger multiplied until it came to head when they arrived at the throne room. Her headache didn’t help her mood either.

“Alexius! Look at what you’ve done to the world! All for what?” Evelyn wanted to throttle the man, screw using her daggers. She’d use her fists to pummel his face in, but when she looked at his side, she saw a very frail Felix and suddenly felt pity. He was in even worse shape than Leliana.

“For my country, my son. But it means nothing now. I knew you would come back for me. My final failure.”

“Was it worth it? Everything you did, to yourself?” Dorian asked his former mentor.

“It doesn’t matter, the Elder One comes.” His voice was devoid of emotion, save sadness.

“I will undo this, Alexius. Just give us the amulet, we can still fix this!” Evelyn pleaded, but it didn’t help when Leliana’s impatience took matters into her own hands. She grabbed the weakened Felix, drawing her knife to his throat with no remorse.

“I want the world back.” All of her pain and anger went into her action, and Evelyn felt it.

She felt guilt for letting Alexius get the best of them in the first place, he should have never been allowed to use that amulet. If Evelyn had only been quicker, drawn her bow, she could have prevented him opening that damn portal. She swallowed down the guilt, she had to act to make things right.

“Aww, shit.” Hawke muttered, already drawing his staff out once Leliana took her vengeance.

“Barrier, please!” Evelyn cried out for help, knowing the magister’s magic would first seek her and Blackwall out, the least protected of the group. Alexius’s fury had already knocked Leliana back and out of the fight when she took his son’s life, the only thing he still cared about.

Evelyn took the safe route and took cover behind a pillar, while Dorian conjured a wall of flame to keep the demons at bay.

“Demons on top of a pissed off magister, this day just couldn’t get any better…” Hawke huffed through trying to multitask between Alexius and the rift that appeared in the center of the room.

Evelyn was worried they would become overrun until Leliana regained consciousness, allowing Evelyn to launch herself forward daggers blazing. Demon’s blood dripped down them, splattering over Evelyn’s clothes as she moved swiftly around her targets.

When she stepped on the glowing yellow spot on the floor, her focus blocked out everything and her pulse slowed. It felt like time was going slower as the demons attempted to react to her attacks. At the corner of her eye she saw Dorian and Hawke’s slowed forms twirling their staves in a grace she envied. Despite the sense of slowed movement, Evelyn found herself blurring past the demons with a quick precision that they couldn’t keep up with.

When she was done with the rift, Alexius lay dead by Dorian’s hand. Alas, they weren’t out of the woods yet.

The only thing Evelyn could say to Dorian was, “This Alexius was far too gone to save, but the Alexius from our time can still be reasoned with.” She was still angry at the magister, but could tell his fall from grace deeply bothered her new ally.

“I suppose that’s true.” Dorian picked up the necklace from the floor. “This is the same amulet he used before. I think it’s the same one we made in Minrathous. It’s a relief. Give me an hour to work out the spell he used and I should be able to re-open the rift.” That didn’t sit well with Leliana.

“An hour?? That’s impossible! You must go now!”

“Well, we would like to leave as quickly as possible…” Hawke interrupted sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

She ignored him before a rumble rocked through the castle. “The Elder One.”

“Something tells me we won’t survive this encounter if that amulet doesn’t work.” Evelyn furrowed her brow, then felt her heart become heavy when Blackwall and Solas volunteered to lay down their own lives to hold the enemy off.

“We’re already dead, the tainted lyrium in our blood saw to that.” Solas grimly said, his face was pained but left no regret behind.

“Leliana, you’re the last line of defense. Give them what you’ve got.” Blackwall nodded to Solas before turning to leave.

“But…” Evelyn felt like a helpless child then, she didn’t want to watch people die for her. Neither did Hawke. She had a feeling he had it happen too much in the past for comfort when she looked at his expression.

“The only way we live is if this day never comes.” Leliana concluded, and their plan was set forth.

Evelyn watched the spectacle that was Leliana, chanting her favorite Andrastian verses when the enemy broke through the door. She was tempted to draw her bow and aid her, but Hawke’s firm hand cautioned her to stand back, lest Dorian’s spell would fail.

“It's working!” Hawke cried out, motioning Evelyn towards the portal. The last few moments Evelyn watched Leliana fight with everything she had, and something struck her.

Every action her brother and herself took affected these people, and that was not something she had been prepared for. Not three months past she had been readying her own long anticipated trip around Thedas. She saved everything she had, secretly stashing it away from her mother’s prying eyes. Evelyn knew her parents wouldn’t approve; they were always trying to groom her to spend the rest of her life in Ostwick running their estate when it was time for the Bann to retire.

She suffered through mother’s attempts to bring young noble suitors around, the dinners were dreadfully boring, but she managed. Suffice to say, the idea of escaping from it all is what got her through the ugly frilly dresses, Evelyn endured.

Evelyn Trevelyan still hadn’t let go of that idea of freedom and adventure she sought out, but she was stuck in this role beside her brother she didn’t really want. And that troubled her as she witnessed what her role as Herald of Andraste truly meant.

As the trio entered the ready portal, Evie felt a sadness she had never felt, for she knew she was alone in these feelings. Trapped by a duty she never asked for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter focuses (or at least I tried to convey this) the Trevelyan's motivations and hint at how they are going to assimilate into their future role with the Inquisition. Max is kind of finding his courage facing off with Envy, he wasn't going to let it win. He's very much the wannabe noble hero that has a moral compass he follows. Finding his own identity is a major theme with him I'm working on.
> 
> Meanwhile, in Evie town, she's practically the opposite. I tried to convey that the idea of her action/inaction has an adverse effect on the world actually bothers her because she isn't the hero type. She had things she wanted to do in her life, and getting the anchor has effectively disrupted her plans (just when she thought she was escaping her overbearing parents, don't worry I'm having them make a future appearance so there's a point).
> 
> Anyways, thanks for reading! If you like it, hit the kudos button ;) P.S. I am always looking for a beta.


	10. Cocky

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After finishing up with the mages in Redcliffe, Evelyn learns how Hawke handled being the Champion of Kirkwall and grows closer than she thought she would to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally got to work in a little romance in this chapter!

“No offense to the people, but if I never see Redcliffe again, I’ll shed no tears.” Hawke said as they saddled up their horses after speaking with Master Dennet. Solas and Blackwall decided to escort the rebel mages back to Haven, leaving Evelyn to once again travel alone with the champion.

“Can’t say I disagree with that sentiment!” Evelyn took care to shrug off her feelings of unease from her growing role with the Inquisition once the decision to recruit the mages had been made. She knew she was probably stuck in it for the long haul, so Evelyn was going to try to make the best of things from then on out.

“So now that we’re done with that mess, does that mean you’ll become more talkative then?” Hawke prodded her as they began their journey.

“What do you mean?” Evelyn raised an eyebrow in question. She knew he saw through her tough facade, but still feigned ignorance. That was her emotional wall in play she always tried to maintain.

“Oh, come on. I know you better than you think, Evelyn. You seemed…” He paused, thinking of the best way to put it. “Troubled?”

Evelyn sighed. “I just didn’t think how much was riding on our shoulders. If I had said no to the mages, what would have happened to them?”

“Their fates would have been worse off if you hadn’t helped them. You did the right thing, Ev.” Hawke sent a warm approving look her way, making her glad she had his support. She was also surprised that she didn’t mind him calling her that, only Max had ever referred to her in informal ways.

“You must have plenty of experience with these sort of things. You had a whole city looking to you for years, did you not?” Evelyn asked, partly wanting to know more of how he juggled it all.

Hawke gave a small chuckle. “Ah, that I did. I didn’t always like the burden of responsibility either. It was tough at times. You know, you remind me of myself.” That got her attention.

“Oh, really. Evelyn Trevelyan like Garrett Hawke, how so?” She cocked an eyebrow at him.

“Most of the time trouble found me. I certainly didn’t ask for my mantle. One moment I was just trying to find ways to get my family out of the slums and having fun with Varric and our friends, the next I found myself saving the city from the Qunari.” They stopped their horses at a stream. “Time went on, and I found myself being looked to more and more as a beacon of hope, before I knew it, my actions were inadvertently contributing to something much bigger.”

“So you became bigger than just yourself, something more. That didn’t bother you? You weren’t worried you lost your identity?” Evelyn wondered how someone who played such an integral part of the mage rebellion could be so nonchalant.

“Not at first, no. It just felt like the right thing to do. But as time went on it became harder, worrying if I was making the right choices. The more your influence grows, the heavier the responsibility becomes. But you want to know why I think you’ll be fine no matter what that damn Breach throws our way?”

“Sure, why not!” She threw her hands up, they had plenty of time to talk on their way back to Haven anyways.

“Because like me, you’re resilient and stubborn. We may not come from the same kind of background, but I have faith you will rise to every challenge and come out on top.”

Evelyn smiled. “Would you give me a boost up if I need it?”

“Did you really think you’d have to ask, love?” Hawke sent her a wink, and of course Evelyn’s cheeks betrayed her to him. The pair continued their trek until they reached the foot of the frostbacks before setting up camp for the night.

“Dear Evelyn, have you ever made a fire before?” Hawke teased as he watched her try to capture fire in the pit she had set up.

“I have! I’m just not very good at it…” Evelyn huffed annoyed, refusing to ask the mage for help.

“While you were trying in vain to do that, I’ve already gotten our tent set up, so maybe you should let the expert help-” He moved forward before she interrupted him.

“Garrett, just because you can conjure fire at your fingertips does not make you an expert at camp fires.” Evelyn’s pride of course hated ceding to the man.

“Work smarter, not harder.” Hawke conjured up a ball of flame and brought it to the pit.

“Cheater.” Evelyn sat back as the fire caught on, the heat warming her cold bones.

“Call it what you like, but we are warmer now!” He took a seat next to her, warming his hands.

“Fine, you win. Cocky little shit.” Evelyn said under her breath, barely containing a teasing smile.

“You may call me cocky, and a shit, but please do refrain from calling me little. I’m anything but.” Hawke wiggled his eyebrows at her and leaned his shoulder against hers before she threw a playful punch his way. He did have a point though. Evelyn stole a glance at his muscled arms before quickly moving her eyes back to the fire.

“Maker help me get through this trip with this insufferable man!”

“I can’t help it the Maker blessed me with confidence. You should try it sometime, might unwind you a bit.”

“What, be more insufferable?”

“Oh, you know you’re beautiful.” That comment caught her off guard. “That, there. That look of surprise. Like you don’t realize how utterly amazing you are.” Hawke leaned forward to brush her brown hair from her shoulder. Evelyn froze.

She forced herself to swallow the lump in her throat before answering him. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Garrett.” The thought crossed her mind that the mage was trying to seduce her and she had no idea how to react to the situation! No, he was just messing with her she convinced herself.

“Uh-huh. Tell me then, how many suitors have you had? I assume being from a noble family you’ve had the _pleasure_ of your family trying to set you up.” Evelyn groaned at the inquiry.

“Ugh, I’ve had a few, yes. They were boors, though.” She cast her eyes towards the fire, trying to avoid his piercing gaze.

“Boor or not, I bet they saw the same beauty in you that I see right now. Even as you try to hide it.” Hawke said knowingly, so sure in his conviction. How did he see through her so easily? She was always so good at blocking other people out from seeing in. Trying to hide from Hawke wasn’t working, so Evelyn decided to change her tactics.

She turned to face him and look him straight in the eyes. “Alright, I’ll bite. Yes, I do that with men, but it’s obvious it doesn’t work with you. I like you Hawke, but I don’t want to mess our friendship up. Whatever you think you’re trying to do won’t work out.” Evelyn crossed her arms and did her best to dissuade the man, feeling he was wasting his time. The Trevelyan’s would eat him alive if she ever brought him home, that’s for sure.

“And why is that?” He continued to look at her with complete confidence, not deterred in the slightest by her words.

His face was barely inches from hers now, but she did her best to ignore his attractive features. Damn the man for having such a sexy beard though! She wanted to run her fingers through his chestnut locks, it looked so soft.

“You wouldn’t like my family.” She curtly said, trying to focus on keeping her face from betraying her body’s natural response to his very close proximity. Hawke kept hovering closer and closer to her when she didn’t back away, and she cursed herself for it.

“Mothers love me. Got any other reasons?” Any closer and their lips would practically be touching. Evelyn could feel her heart racing in her chest. Again, she froze, too nervous to move forward, too afraid to move away.

“I--I don’t know…” She barely stammered out, suddenly feeling like a lovesick teenager again.

The mage smiled at her, his breath sweetly dancing on her lips. “I didn’t think so.” And then they touched, just barely gliding over Evelyn’s lips and her head felt dizzy as she closed her eyes. It was an innocent kiss, not greedy for more, Evelyn could tell Hawke was a patient man.

He tasted of honey, making Evelyn wonder what she tasted like to him as the kiss deepened. Hawke’s hands settled warmly over her thighs as her hands found their way on his chest. For the moment everything around them seemed to stand still as she opened her mouth to let his tongue explore hers. And then it ended. Hawke broke off with an almost smug look on his face, glad to have gotten past her barriers.

“Good night, Evelyn.” She had to force herself to not exude a look of shock at how easily he had stopped and just went about going to bed after that kiss. Evelyn gave a quiet exhale, still remembering the feel of his lips on hers like they had never left, she was almost disappointed, but knew he was playing some sort of game.

“Good night, Garrett.” They settled into the tent and gathered the fur blanket they shared around them. Evelyn watched the crackles of the fire slowly fizzle, blocking the memory of the kiss out as she wondered how her brother was doing at Therinfal.


	11. Catching Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max has a moment with Cassandra, Hawke has a bad taste in his mouth, and the twins are reunited back in Haven.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's a bit of a filler chapter, I'll be working up to 'In your heart shall burn' fairly soon I expect.

Max tossed and turned all through the first night in camp after the Inquisition concluded in Therinfal. Images would surface of his fight with the demon, how Envy’s lightning fast reflexes tested every muscle of his body to falter. There were no missteps, not as long as Cassandra and Cole fought by his side. When he could finally take no more of the restless thoughts that pervaded his mind, he crawled out of his tent and found Cassandra who sat at the camp fire, tending to her blade.

“Can’t sleep?” She asked without looking up, somehow knowing it was Max behind her.

“No, I couldn’t get Therinfal out of my head.” Max rubbed at the sore muscles in his neck and sat next to the seeker. “Why aren’t you asleep? Everyone else is.” Max threw a look over at Iron Bull, happily snoring a few feet away against a tree trunk.

“I require little sleep, and besides, I like to keep watch.” Cassandra replied, Max noted the subtle nuances in her voice that were always accentuated by her Nevaran accent. Her complexion shone luminously next to the fire; Max felt like a moth to a flame, and she was the latter.

“If I only had your resolve, but I like sleep too much.” Max drew his knees up and stared at the fire, still worried in the back of his mind how his sister was doing. They hadn’t received news of Redcliffe yet.

Cassandra turned to regard him, their eyes finally meeting. “But you do have it. I saw it when we went up against that demon, don’t discredit yourself. I’ve not known many men outside of the order who would not hesitate to fight a beast like that. At least not one from noble lineage.” The compliment pleasantly surprised Max, he still was not used to these rare candid moments with Cassandra.

“Oh, well I appreciate that, Lady Cassandra!” Max felt a blush creep up on him, his nerves threatening to lock him up. He forced it down. “You were quite a sight yourself. In action, I mean. Er-” Maker, he was an idiot. Cassandra laughed at him.

“I know what you mean, Maxwell.” A small smile lay hidden at the corner of her mouth. “We should spar when we have a moment back in Haven. It would be nice to train with someone that isn’t one of Cullen’s recruits.” Train with Seeker Cassandra from the famed dragon hunting clan Pentaghast? Max was in heaven. Her understated beauty made it even more worthwhile to Max to have a chance to spend time with her.

“I’d love to.” Max gave his usual charming smile, glad she was warming up to him.

“I suggest you get your rest then, if you’re going to spar against me, you better be ready.” They both stood up, ready to head to bed. When she turned, Maxwell’s eyes lingered on her back before moving back to his tent. Thoughts of training with Cassandra accompanied his dreams that night, a much better option than dreaming of corrupted templars and demons.

X

Hawke’s ass was tired of riding horseback to get to Haven. Never in his life had he travelled as much as he had since he started helping the Inquisition, but a little voice in his head kept telling him it was worth it. He missed all his friends in Kirkwall, but just Varric was better than nothing. At least Evelyn was by his side, that’s what he told himself, and he was definitely right. The way her lips felt on his that night was hard to get out of his head.

Her small hands placed gingerly on his broad chest, her body just so slightly inclined to lean in, soaking up the moment. He cursed himself for ending the kiss, but he had to. He certainly wasn’t going to have his way with her in the middle of nowhere; Evelyn deserved better than that. And so he had to stop himself, even though every fiber of his being went mad with lust for the way she touched him.

Maybe it wasn’t just that. A part of Hawke felt it right to distance himself from Evelyn, like he didn’t feel worthy of her deep down. Evelyn was a very caring person he could tell; he saw it in her everyday. She usually went out of her way to help people, even though she played it off. It was the same way back at Redcliffe. Hawke was nothing but trouble. Sure, he had helped people, but he drew a target on his back over time and that wasn’t something he wanted to bring her into.

They didn’t speak as much as they usually did when drawing close to Haven.

“Brother!” Evelyn was already scrambling off her horse before Hawke could register who was waiting at the gates. Max rushed to his sister’s side, crushing her in a hug.

“Champion.” Commander Cullen greeted the mage. “I trust your journey was well?” He asked as Hawke walked his horse to the nearby stables. The two men watched the siblings reunite as they exchanged pleasantries. Hawke was quick to notice the former templar particularly eying Evelyn.

“It was, Commander Cullen. Not too much trouble my staff couldn’t handle.” Hawke took care to say, already feeling prickly at how the man looked at Evelyn.

“That’s, uh, good. Well, I’ll leave you to it then.” The blonde man said in his usual stoic tone before walking away.

“Yes, leave me to it!” Hawke muttered under his breath, barely audible, but enough to catch Harritt’s raised eyebrow. Damn Evelyn for making him feel jealous! She had no idea he was, but damn her all the same.

The feeling brought back unpleasant memories of the countless times he had to deal with Isabela and her drunken suitors over the years. Most of them were nothing to worry about, but Isabela liked to flirt, especially when she was drunk at The Hanged Man. After many a night going home with swollen knuckles and a bruised ego, it was safe to say jealousy wasn’t something Hawke was entirely interested in revisiting again. Hawke looked at Evelyn who seemed so carefree, genuinely happy to be back at Haven and reunited with her brother, and couldn’t fault her then.

“Ugh, I need a drink with Varric.” Hawke blew his hair out of face before resolving a cold, hard drink with his best friend was the ideal way to get out of his funk and back to his usual self.

X

Evelyn was more than relieved to be back at Haven. She had heard so little of her brother’s success at Therinfal, as soon as they were done greeting one another, they set out to find their cabin and catch up.

“You look well rested, how long ago did you get back?” Evelyn asked as she sank down into a chair, ready to pull her boots off.

“Just two nights ago. Cassandra and I did our best to get back as soon as possible to make sure the templars transition here would go smoothly. I was a little worried when I heard the rebel mages would also be joining us, I won’t lie.” Evelyn detected the mistrust in her brother’s voice. She waved it off.

“Don’t worry about them, Hawke and I have them covered, brother.” The mention of the mage brought the kiss back to Evelyn’s mind. Ah, how agonizingly teasing had it been! She had not forgotten it. How could she? No one quite had the lips Hawke did.

“Good. I am happy you were successful, I didn’t doubt you for a moment.” Max set down a pair of mugs and poured them a round of cider before settling in next to Evelyn.

“Pray tell, dear brother. What did happen with the templars? I heard some rather curious tales of demons.” Evelyn didn’t know a whole lot of the subject, but knew it must have been serious if even an inkling of the rumors were true.

“I see word gets around fast! Well, when we arrived…” When he was done telling her all the debaucherous details, she sat there unable to think of anything to say, so she just sipped at her cider with both eyebrows raised.

“It’s all true! Both of our adventures do have one thing in common though, one that is bothersome.” Max’s tone shifted, Evelyn could sense the mood changing in the air.

“The Elder One.” They spoke the name at the same time, their unique bond still obviously intact after being apart for the first time in their entire lives.

The twins sat in silence, pondering who this villain truly was, why he was obsessed with them. They only ever sat like that when something weighed heavily on them, deep in thought. It took hearing the dinner bell three times to break them of their trance. Pretty soon they would be formulating a plan to incorporate both the mages and templars to help close the breach, they’d need a full belly and plenty of rest to be up for the task to come.


End file.
